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PM Modi's soaring popularity

The nation thinks Narendra Modi is keeping his word, and would vote in a saffron-led government with even more lawmakers than it did in the May elections if that exercise were to be repeated today.

Mail Today – Fri 22 Aug, 2014

NEW DELHI: He was the face of the BJP's election campaign, connecting directly with the people by taking up common concerns and raising issues dear to their hearts. He made a covenant with India's voters: Elect me and I will deliver.

And as the 100-day mark of the NDA government draws near, the nation thinks Narendra Modi is keeping his word, and would vote in a saffron-led government with even more lawmakers than it did in the May elections if that exercise were to be repeated today.

The people who voted overwhelmingly for Modi have kept their faith and patience in the NDA government. According to an India Today Group-Hansa Research Mood of the Nation opinion poll, the first after Modi took office, 57 per cent believe he is best suited to be prime minister, 48 per cent think he has made ministers irrelevant, and 47 per cent are sure he will be able to resist the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) agenda.

If Indians had to go to polls again, 48 per cent say they would vote for the BJP again which, though overwhelming, is less than Modi's personal popularity.

If a general election were to be held today, the BJP would get 314 seats in the Lok Sabha, an astonishing 32 more than it won on May 16.

Modi's personal popularity could be attributed to the fact that the largest bloc of respondents - 46 per cent - said he represents development; 70 per cent interpret his win as a mandate for development.

As far as Modi's Cabinet is concerned, as many as 78 per cent of respondents think it is a good Cabinet. On the topic of Modi and the RSS, the ideological mentor of the ruling BJP, there do remain many who think he is under RSS influence and hence will try to strike a balance.

Though many believe Modi is somewhat under the RSS influence, his victory is certainly not a boost to Hindu fundamentalism, three-fifths of respondents said.

When it comes to prevalent issues, respondents wanted Modi to address poverty (23 per cent), corruption (22 per cent) and price rise (18 per cent).

Women also wanted the Prime Minister to stop crime against the fairer sex (13 per cent).

Asked if people felt safe under the Modi government, 76 per cent of respondents said they feel safe. This was a feeling shared even by Muslims (68 per cent).

Responding to a question on who would benefit the most from Modi's premiership, 27 per cent believed it would be the poor. But 52 per cent believed that the performance of public services had remained the same.

On the educational front, a majority (69 per cent) believed that text books need revision, while 51 per cent called for sex education in schools.

With regard to the question on which party the people would vote for if polls were held tomorrow, a vote contrast was witnessed in the Muslim community, with 29 per cent saying they would back the BJP and 24 per cent the Congress.

Twenty-nine per cent of respondents said Rahul Gandhi is still the best prime ministerial candidate for the Congress, though not an undisputed choice. Twenty per cent though Sonia Gandhi was the best candidate. Sixty per cent also thought Rahul's style of leadership needs re-orientation.

Cross-border terrorism was identified as the biggest threat to India's internal security by 54 per cent of respondents while Pakistan was named as the country constituting the biggest threat to India.Source: yahoo News India